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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/24871495">Mother and Son</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/Idle_Hans/pseuds/Idle_Hans'>Idle_Hans</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>AU is a Measure of Distance [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Canon Divergence, Gen</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-06-23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-06-23</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-04 09:49:12</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>No Archive Warnings Apply</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>284</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/24871495</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/Idle_Hans/pseuds/Idle_Hans</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Eileen Snape had the wisdom to warn her son that, while cunning and ambition would be essential to be his future, as a poor half-blood with a mudblood for a friend he would be quite miserable if sorted into Slytherin.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Lily Evans Potter &amp; Severus Snape</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series:</b></td><td>AU is a Measure of Distance [1]</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Series URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/series/1799656</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>4</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>41</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Mother and Son</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Eileen Prince had thrived in Slytherin.<br/>
But she had been pureblood of good family.</p>
<p>Severus Snape was socially awkward.<br/>
Dirt poor.<br/>
Half-blood.<br/>
Son of a disowned mother.<br/>
Sytherin would be a challenge for him in the best of circumstances, at the best of times.<br/>
No doubt he <em>could</em> do it.<br/>
But he would have to make hard choices.</p>
<p>And this was not the best of times.<br/>
There were signs and whispers.<br/>
A new faction of blood purists.<br/>
The kind who put their wands where their words were.<br/>
They were certain to have a presence in Slytherin.<br/>
Recruiting.<br/>
Enforcing.<br/>
Punishing.</p>
<p>And this was not the best of circumstances.<br/>
Her son's best friend. <br/>
His <em>only</em> friend.<br/>
Mudblood.<br/>
Gryffindor written all over her.<br/>
Hufflepuff at best.<br/>
He would have to make sacrifices.<br/>
Throw Lily Evans away.<br/>
Publicly.<br/>
Just to survive.</p>
<p>The disaster of her marriage had taught Eileen what it's like to be despised and lonely.<br/>
Hating what's become of you.<br/>
Scrabbling for what little acceptance you can get.<br/>
She was <em>ambitious</em> that it not happen to her son.<br/>
And cunning.</p>
<p>She took him aside.<br/>
She taught him fiendfyre.<br/>
She explained her reasoning.<br/>
She even said 'Mudblood'.<br/>
For effect.<br/>
That is what the girl will get called there.<br/>
Why pretend otherwise?</p>
<p>And when the sorting hat was placed upon him, Severus Snape said within his head: <em>I swear on my magic that if you put me in Slytherin I'll burn you to nothing!</em></p>
<p>The hat almost put him in Sytherin anyway.<br/>
For cunning<br/>
.... of a sort.</p>
<p>The hat almost put him in Hufflepuff.<br/>
For loyalty<br/>
.... of a sort.</p>
<p>It joked about putting him in Gryffindor.<br/>
For bravery<br/>
.... of a sort.</p>
<p>In the end it took pity.</p>
<p>"Ravenclaw!"</p>
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